Jet thrust motor



Aug. 26, 1947.

w. E. 'VAN DoRN JET THRUST MOTOR Filed March 10, 1944 5 shams-sheet 1 INVENTOR. PVM/ IAM E. VN DoRN Aug 26, 1947 w. E. VAN-BORN f 2,426,537

JET THUsT MOTOR Filed March 10, 1944 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. MILL/AM E, WN Donn Aug. 26, 1947. w. E, `VAN DOR JET THRUST MOTOR Filed March 10, 1944 5 Sheets-Sheetv 3 INVENTOR.

TML/JAM E VAN Don/v AT TORNEYS.

Aug. 26, 1947. 4 w. E.`vAN DoRN 2,425,537

` JET THRUsT MOTOR Filed March 10, 1944 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 Ffa-.LZ

tvlll//l/l/Ava g INVENTOR. .m '4 I/V/LL/AM E. M4N DOEN Y v 1 'BY l M a CLF A rrok/vE Ys.

Aug. 26, 1947.

. W. E. VAN DORN JET THRUST MOTOR Filed March lO, 1944 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. I/V/LL/AM E'. M4N DQRN l ATTORNEYS.

Patented Aug. 26, 1947 .mr 'rmws'r Moron William E. Van Dorn, Pasadena, Calif., assignor to Aeroiet Engineering Corporation, Azusa, Calif., a corporation of Delaware v f 'Application March 10, 1944, Serial No. 525,840

4 Claims.l (Cl. (io-35.6)

This invention relates to thrust motors and particularly to thrust lmotors of the type useful on aircraft.

The principal object is to provide an assembly of a. thrust motor and its operating equipment which can readily be attached and detached to and from an airplane.

Another object is to provide means for detaching the motor while the plane is in ilight and to parachute the motor to the ground.

Thrust motors of the jet' propulsion type are known in the art. 'I'hey ordinarily comprise a combustion chamber with an exhaust nozzle lead-V ing from the chamber to the exterior. Heretofore, solid propellant motors have been used for assisted take-oilD and after performing such useful work have been dropped from the airplane to reduce the dead weight thereof.

In accordance with my invention I enclose a jet thrust motor and its operating tanks of propellant and operating equipment in a hull which may be attached beneath an aircraft. The hull is streamlined to reduce air resistance. motor and its parts are securely held together and supported within the hull.

A feature is the provision of a. parachute which opens when the unit, comprising the hull and motor, is dropped.

Another feature is the provision of a nose for the hull capable of withstanding the shock of landing by the parachute.

The invention will be better understood from the following detailed description of specic embodiments thereof, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which: Y

Fig. 1 is an elevation view, partly in cross-section, of a unit in accordance with my invention;

Fig. 2 is a rear view of the nose member look-` ing to the left from line 2 2 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view from the'left side of the uni in Fig. 1 from the line 3-3;

Fig. 4 is a View from the right side of the unit in Fig. 1 with part of the hull removed;

-Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the unit showing a recess for a parachute;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the lower half of the unit shown in Figs. 1 and 5;

Fig. 'l is a bottom plan view of aninspection door used in the unit;

Fig. 8 is an elevation of the door shown in Fig. 7;

Fig. 9 shows the unit of Figs. 1 and 5 attached to the lower section of an a'irplane;

Fig. 10 is a front elevation of an airplane with two units according to Figs. land 5;

The

Fig. 11 is a. cross section along line II-II of Fig. 14 shows in cross section a detail of theattachment of the nose portion in Fig. 1;

Fig. 15 is a view of the jet thrust motor unit supported by a parachute;

Fig. 16 is a plan view of a parachute tray with attached flaps;

Fig. 17 is a perspective view of a packed parachute; and

Fig.. 18 is a fragmentary section along line I4-I 4 as indicated in Fig. 1'7.

Referring to the drawing, I show in Fig, 1 a streamlined hull comprising three hull portions 30, 49 and 85, fastened together to form a hollow interior. Within the hull is a jet thrust motor 4 and all the fuel and other equipment required to operate it.

There are provided three tanks I, 2 and 3 bolted to each other by bolts IIII in brackets 48. These brackets 48 are welded to the tanks I, 2 and 3 as shown. Tank I is spherical in shape and fits into the provided re-entrant dimple 2a of the spherical tank 2. Tank 2 ts into the provided re-entrant dimple 3a of the spherical tank 3.

Tank I contains a gas such as nitrogen under pressure which is used for pressurizing liquid fuel in tank 2 and a liquid oxidizer in tank 3. The fuel and oxidizer under pressure are led through conduits into the combustion chamber of the let thrust motor 4 which is attached to tank 3 by means of brackets 5 of which three are shown. A detachable electrical connection B from an airplane' control panel IIlI (Fig. 10) leads into a junction box II (Fig. 1) from which an electrical conduit I2 leads to a pressure switch I 3 which is attached to the pressure tank I., Another'conduit I4 leads into a level indicator I5, from box II, which is attached .to the oxidizer tank 3 and a third electrical conduit I4' leads from the junction box- II into the solenoid valve l. The solenoid valve I is connected by a pipe 9 with a regulator valve I0 which is attached .to pressure tank I. Pilot line pipes I6 and I6 lead from the solenoid valve into the pressure line valve 8 attached to oxidizer tankv 3, and` the pressure line valve 8' which is attached to the fuel tank 2. Also two pipes (not shown) lead from the regulator valve into the respective pressure line valves 8 and 8. Propellant valve 2| receives the fuel through a pipe I9 which leads out of a fuel lter and drain I8 attached to fuel tank 2, and the oxidizerthrough pipe 20 which leads out of the oxidizer filter and drain I1 attached to the oxidizer tank 3.. The propellant valve 2| then allows the oxidizer to flow through a pipe 24 into the injector cap 23 of the jet thrust motor 4, and the fuel through a, pipe 22 as shown in Fig.4 into the combustion chamber through injector cap 23 of the jet thrust motor.

For attaching the streamlined hull of the jet thrust motor unit to an aircraft, two suspension lugs A and A (Figs. 1 and 4) are provided which are spaced properly from each other to conform with a standard bomb rack |98 (Fig: 9) as used on military aircraft. The lugs are a combination of two brackets 60 and 6| (Fig, 4) which support a stud 62 between them. The brackets 60 and 6| are fastened to a U-shaped bar 63 which is attached to brackets 64 and 64 which in turn are secured to the forward tank and the aft tank 3 respectively (Figs. 1 and 4).

This assembly of tanks, conduits, control valves and jet thrust motor provides a liquid propellant jet thrust motor unit which is surrounded by a streamlined hull as shown. The hull comprises a nose cap 30 (Figs. 1, 5, 9 and 14) which is of a parabolic outline having a covering of cloth such as canvas or the like and is filled with a soft resilient material 3|, such as sisal, which is adapted to absorb shocks (Figs. 1 and 14). The. cloth or'canvas 30 has a plurality of reinforced eyes 32 (Fig. 5) along its periphery at its reinforced open end and is laced with a steel cable 33 through these eyes to the ears 34 which are secured by bolts 39 to a ring 35 (Fig. 14) made of Wood or the like, and further attached to another f ring 36, a cup-shaped member 31, and a connecting disc 38. The member` 31 may be made of plastic or the like and shaped in its center portion so that it encloses the spherical outline of tank as'vshown, its outer periphery being shaped to formfa cup into which connectingdisc 38 is flttedXThe disc 38 has a raised annular portion 40 w ch permits clearance for the heads of the sho der bolts 4| and is fastened by rivets 42 to the cup-shaped member 31. The annular portion 40 (Fig. 2) is provided with a plurality of annular openings resembling keyslots each having a large hole 43 which permit entry of shoulder bolt head 4|, and a slot 44 of a width which is somewhat less than the diameter of hole 43. A tapped hole 45 is provided on the bolt circle and between two such keyslots. A plurality of brackets 48 (Fig. 3) are attached lto the spherical tank I and provided with shoulder bolts 4|, and

a bracket 41 with a clearance hole 46 attached to the tank I. Shoulder bolts 4| are inserted into the brackets 48 just far enough to permit a sliding lt for the wall of the connecting disc 38 (Fig. 14). The nose member 30 is then placed so that holes 43 are in line with the corresponding shoulder bolt heads 4| on the brackets 48 in such a manner that tapped hole 45 of the nose member is near the clearance hole 46 of the bracket 41, and pushed down. The wall of the connecting disc 38 is slidingly held by the shoulder bolts 4|. The nose cap in. which the stems of the bolts slide in slots 44 is then twisted slightthe tapped hole 45 of the nose member. A small screw passing through hole 46 and into the tapped hole45 locks this nose member 30 in place.

The streamlined tail portion of the hull is made of two halves. The upper half 49 (Figs. 1, 5 and 14) may be of plastic or the like and made in its y ly until clearance hole 46 (Fig. 3) is in line with front portion to conform to the general outline of the upper half of the nose member 3D. Mem-- l V52 provided around ring 36 in the nose member 38. Clearance openings B and B' (Fig. 5) are provided for the suspension lugs A and Al (Fig. 1) and for the flexible conduit 6 in the upper streamlined semi-cylindrical oval surface of the upper half 48 of the tail portion.

On either side of said openings for the suspension lugs A and A' there-are provided protecting fairings 66 and 66' (Fig. 5) which extend well beyond either lug A or A', thereby providing a protective guard for the lugs. These members y66 and 66' may be made of resilient material such as plastic or the like, pressed out to form the shape as shown and provided with flanges which are then fastened with cowl fasteners to the upper half of the tail portion. Member 66' besides having an upper fairing also has a plurality of lower bumps 61 which are made of resilient material such as plastic or the like and are shown in Fig. 8. Said bumps 61 protrude into the interior of the upper half 49 of the hull and help to position the upper portion of the tail section 49. An openlngC (Fig. 11) is provided in the upper half of the hull to receive these lower bumps 61.and this opening serves for servicing and inspection purposes. A smaller door 68 (Fig. 5) is attached by hinge 69 on the opposite side of the opening 6 in the upper half 49 of the hull and is closed with a single snap fastener 10. 'The purpose of this door is to provide an opening D for operating the regulator valve ||1 which may be placed just below this door. The streamlined upper half 49 has hinge strips 83 (Fig. 13) riveted to its longitudinal sides, which are reinforced on the inside with strips 84. A plurality of similar inwardly protruding bumps 86 (Fig. 5) are provided on either side of the upper portion 49. The bumps 86 being of a resilient materia] such as plastic or the like are similar in shape to bumps 61 and are placed in such position that they help to locate theupper portion 49 of the tail section in a manner similar to bumps 61. Angle 94 is attached at the rear end of the upper half 49 and serves as an anchor for a clip 95 which secures a tray 68 into the recess 65 (Figs. 1 and 5) by means of an airplane cowl fastener. The cowl fastener comprises a cowl receptacle |05 attached to clip 95 as shown in Figs. 1 and 9 and a cowl fastener stud |0I. The upper half 49 continues its streamlined semi-ovo tubular shape until it drops down near its end forming a recess 65 which is illustrated in Fig. 5. This recess 65 serves as a. cradle for a tray 68 which is adapted to carry a packed parachute. beneath the parachute cover |86 (Fig. 1). The parachute cover |06 conforms to the general streamlining of the streamlined upper half 49 of the hull tail portion as shown.

The tray 68 (Fig. 17) may be made of reinforced plastic or the like and formed to4 t snugly into the recess 65 (Fig. 5). Tray 66 (Fig, 17) has a fiat bottom which forms an inclined Wall at the front thereof. This wall is long enough to t into the inclined part of the recess 65 of the streamlined upper portion 49. A low wall 68a is formed at an angle all around the flat bottom and the inclined wall of the tray 68. Along either side on the bottom of this tray 68 (Fig. 16) strips orderly manner thereby preventing a dangerous fouling of'the shroud lines when the parachute is released. Flap 'H is attached to the front wall nearI the bottom of the tray and provided with two side aps 'I2 and 'l2' which facilitate packing of the parachute. In the center of the top of the ilap il a standard parachute cone i3 (Fig. 18) is provided. Flap 'i4 (Fig, 16) is secured at the rear wall near the bottom of the tray @d and provided with side flaps and l and also provided with another parachute cone i3 in the top center thereof. On the right side oi' tray 63 a flap 'it is secured to the lowerright hand wall 4near the bottom. Flap 16 having eyelets 'il' in its upper and lower right hand corners, ts over the parachute cones 13 located in the iront and rear flaps il and 'It respectively. In line between the. eyelets Ti two parachute cones 73 Aare attached. On the left side of tray ed another iiap 1B is fastened to the low left hand wall tta near the bottom of said tray. Four reinforced eyelets ll are provided along the left hand edge section of ap 'it which fit over the four parachute cones 13 when the parachute is packed as shown in Fig. 17. A rip cord 80 having at its end four spaced metallic pins It which are inserted into holes |05 of the parachute cones i3 (Fig. 18) and hold the flaps together which comprise the packing of the parachute. In this Fig, 17 it may be observed that the two parachute harness straps @i are outside of the rear end of the tray assembly and each has a harness snap 82 attached at its end.

The front part of the lower portion d5 (Fig. 6) of the streamlined tail section conforms in shape with the lower half of the nose member 3b. Member 85 is fastened to the nose member Sil by means of an angle. One leg 86a of this angle is attached to the hull member 85 with rivets 31, and the other leg 86o extendsinto the annular space 52 (Fi'g. 1) as provided around ring 36 in the nose member 4illl. The angle member may be of a light metal. A plurality ofbumps (it and one bump 88a (Fig. 6) are secured into the lower hull member 85 and serve to locate member 85. The form and quantity of bumps 88 are determined by the outline of the tanks 0f the jet moleading into the jet motors. Before take-@ the regulator valve In (Fig. l) is opened in each jet motor unit. After the pilot has ascertained the pressure and the oxidizer level he presses the button which energizes solenoid valve i', admitting the pressure from the pressure tank to enter the fuel and oxidizer tanks through the corresponding pressure line valves 8 and d. Also the propellant valve is actuated, theneby admitting oridizer through pipe line 2d into the injector 23 'from which it is injected into the combustion chamber of the jet thrust motor, and the fuel is led through pipe 22 direct into the combustion chamber through injector cap 23. The oxidiaer and fuel impinge in the combustion chamber and ignite spontaneously. The ensuing gases stream at supersonic velocity `out into the air, thereby delivering the additional force required'to lift the airplane.

After a short period of time has elapsed, the jet motors having delivered their thrust become useless dead weight for the airplane; The pilot releases one of the jet motors by either pulling on a bomb rack line or pressing another electric button Which operates the bomb rack holding means i663. The jet motor unit drops and the rip cord fastened to the underside oi the wing section is pulled out of the four cones 'i3 (Fig. 9) which are holding the packed parachute. A static 'line Mid having been 'attached to the top of the parachute and the underside of the airplane wing, pulls the parachute out of its pack. This static line rips and releases the unfolded parachute with its jet vmotor cargo, which then oats down to earth (Fig. 15). After this performance the pilot releases the second jetthrust motor. It is of importance that only one motor be released at any time in order to prevent fouling of the parachute shrouds. Such jetI thrust motor enclosed by a. streamlined hull may then be retrieved and its tanks refilled in readiness for adtor and are made similar to bumps Si. Bump 88a y the rear end of the lower hull member 85. The

V-rings 93 serve as the connecting members for the parachute harness straps 8l (Fig. 1'7) whose snaps 82 fasten to the V-rings 93 (Fig. 9).

The lower half 85 has hinge strips 9@ (Fig. 13) riveted to its longitudinal sides, which are reinforced on the inside with strips 9i. Hinge strips 90 t into the provided hinge strips @Si of the upper half 49 of the tail portion of the hull. The upper and the lower portion are then held together by a flexible cable 92.

In operation the jet thrust motor unit is attached to the undersurface of the wings of .an

airplane as shown in Fig. 10. In this embodiditional performance on other airplanes.

The object of my invention has been clearly defined 'as well as its operation. I do not wish to be limited to the preceding description and attached drawings, but,

I claim:

l. A thrust motor unit comprising liquid propellant tanks rigidly attached together, a thrust motor having an exhaust nozzle and rigidly attached to vsaid tanks, a streamlined hull enclosing lsaid tanks and motor, said hull having a nose 3. A hollow streamlined hull for containing a jet motor and supply tanks ior the motor, comprising a rounded nose, a hollow tail divided into two parts along a horizontal plane intersecting the nose, the two parts being attachable together along said plane and both parts being attachable to the nose, said tail having inwardly protruding members for engaging the tanks and motor within the hull, Y

` 4. A hollow streamlined hull for containing a,

jet motor and supply tanks for the motor, comprising a parabolic-shaped nose containing a shock absorbent filling, said nose having a circular periphery, a hollow tail divided longitudi- 7 nally into two parts along a. plane which is substan'tially perpendicular to the circle and cuts the clrclc into two parts, means for fasteningvthe two parts of the tail together along said plane, means for fastening the forward ends of each of said parts to the nose along the circle, said tail parts having inwardly protruding supports for positioning the tanks and motor within the huil. I WILLIAM E. VAN DORN.

REFERENCES CITED I The following references are of record in the iile of this patent:

UNrrED STATES PATENTS Number Name y Date 1,505,520 Zabriskie Aug. 19, 1924 OTHER REFERENCES Military Rockets, by Alexander Klemin, inV

Scientific American, issue of Feb. 1942, page 97. 

